Revolutionary Concord Lesson Plan
Joelle Baschnagel, Pat Brolan, Adam Zilcoski
Framing Question:
1. What were the reactions of Provincials to the actions of the British military in Concord in
April 1775?
2. What paths were taken by the Patriots and British Regulars to sway public opinion in
their favor?
3. Using your prior knowledge, predict the role and duties of the women of Hartwell Tavern
before, during and after their encounter with the British Regulars?
Objectives:
 Students will be able to identify the effect that carnage & bloodshed had on residents in
Concord.
 Students will identify reactions Concordians had to the British actions in April 1775.
 Students will be able to analyze how propaganda played a role after the Battles of
Lexington & Concord.
 Students will be able to identify how local concerns and outside forces influenced
Concordians' reactions to British actions in the spring of 1775.
 Students will be able to identify the options residents had as British regulars marched into
Concord.
 Students will understand and explain the political, economic and social effects of the
Battle of Concord on the Patriots
Artifact 1: The Doolittle Prints & Modern Lexington and Concord
View the Doolittle Prints online at the National Park Service’s American Revolution website:
http://www.nps.gov/revwar/educational_resources/teachers.html. (The images are located in
Lesson One: Prelude to the American Revolution.)
This engraving, "Plate II. A view of the town of Concord,” is one from a series of four by
silversmith Amos Doolittle and artist Ralph Earl, both members of a volunteer Connecticut
military company, drawn in the spring of 1775. This particular engraving depicts the events on
the day of April 19, 1775 in Concord, Massachusetts. While Doolittle and Earl did not directly
experience the British Regulars’ raid on Concord, they travelled to the town from Cambridge in
May of 1775, and created the painting/engraving based on accounts from colonists living in the
area who witnessed the event. This is one of the only primary source drawings depicting this
event and historians believe it to be a fairly accurate account, from a Patriot perspective. The
drawing shows the British troops as they marched into Concord, seeking out military supplies
and ransacking houses in the process. On the cemetery hill overlooking the village, are
Lieutenant Colonel Smith and Major Pitcairn. Buildings and landmarks that can be seen are the
Meeting house and Mill Pond on the left, Wright’s Tavern in the center, and Dr. Timothy
Minot’s house, the town courthouse and tiny schoolhouse to the right.
Critical Thinking Questions:
1. Explain why the British entered Concord in April 1775.
2. Based on the drawing and your knowledge of U.S. history, briefly summarize what the
British did once they arrived in Concord.
3. Identify ways the colonists of Concord may have reacted to the events in the drawing.
Explain why.
4. Compare the colonists’ reactions to British occupation in April 1775 with their reactions
to British occupation during the French and Indian War. How were they similar and/or
different? Why?
5. Look at the photograph of the town of Concord taken in 2010. How is the painting and
photograph similar? In what ways are they different? In what ways did the events on
April 19, 1775 change the town of Concord?
Artifact 2: Hartwell Tavern
As a small country town, Concord seemed relatively removed from the control the
British had on Boston, approximately 20 miles away. However, because of the location of their
tavern, life for the Hartwell’s changed dramatically on the morning of April 19, 1775. Since the
tavern was located on the “Bay Road,” it was the main means of travel the British militia used on
their way to and from Concord. As a result the Hartwell family found themselves in the midst of
the early unrest of the American Revolution. Hartwell men were heavily involved in the battles
and the women played witness to the actions and deaths on that very road. In order to survive
the impending turmoil on the horizon, it was necessary for the Hartwell family to change the
order of their everyday lives in many ways.
Critical Thinking Questions:
1. As proprietor of Hartwell Tavern, how did Ephraim Hartwell’s life change in economic,
political, and social terms during the Concord conflict with the British Regulars?
2. Using the phrase “crossroads of the Revolution”, explain the possible choices the
residents of Hartwell Tavern had and the potential effects?
3. Explain the importance of how Hartwell Tavern could have been used to share the latest
news of the conflicts brewing between England and the Colonies.
4. Using your prior knowledge of the Hartwell family, explain what the reactions could
have been as British soldiers marched past the Tavern on their way to Boston, as well as
the effect of the dead bodies lining the Battle Road.
Artifact 3: A Bloody Butchery
View this document on the Massachusetts Historical Society’s website:
http://www.masshist.org/database/467
In the spring of 1775, British soldiers marched from occupied Boston into rural
Massachusetts Bay attempting to snuff out the growing rebellion that was taking place in that
part of the colony. As the British regulars headed into the countryside, the provincials were
notified using a series of signals. At dawn on April 19th, a handful of men stood on Lexington
Green and met the Red Coats. Shots were fired. Several men on both sides fell. The British
moved on to Concord – their ultimate goal – and were stopped at North Bridge by a larger group
of Minutemen who had come from the surrounding communities to join the Concordians. A
Bloody Butchery was first printed in a newspaper and was then reproduced as a broadside. Its
simplicity in design was effective and its intent was to influence, remind, and inspire other
Americans of the actions of the men who were killed and wounded in what became known as the
“shot heard round the world”.
Critical Thinking Questions:
1. Define propaganda. How can propaganda be used in warfare?
2. In what ways could this retelling of April 19th, 1775, be considered a piece of
propaganda? Consider each part of this broadside.
3. How could this broadside inspire unity and encourage others to join the rebellion?
4. How does this piece of propaganda demonstrate reactions Provincials had in the
aftermath of the Battles of Lexington & Concord
5. Modernize your groups' excerpt in 3-6 sentences. Before you write it on chart paper,
check it with the instructor.
Final Assessment:
Option 1: (See the next page for a lesson on creating the broadside)
Students may create a broadside that takes the Patriot perspective of the events of April 19th,
1775. The broadside must have the following:
a) An illustration that evokes emotion from the reader
b) A brief summary of the events of April 19th – be sure to be biased!
c) Some sort of poem or eulogy
Option 2:
Students may create a journal entry of a young boy or girl living in Concord during April 1775.
The journal should detail what the character saw as 700+ British soldiers marched through town
center. You may use the Doolittle illustrations to get a sense of what Concord looked like in the
18th century. Your journal could also be written from the perspective of an individual at or
around Hartwell Tavern as the British quickly retreated back to Boston after their defeat at North
Bridge.
Option 3:
Students may create an artist’s rendition of British soldiers escaping Concord and retreating back
to Boston from the perspective of an individual at Hartwell Tavern. Use the Doolittle drawings
for inspiration and refer back to the events near Hartwell Tavern for specifics. Your drawing
should demonstrate an understanding of the events by portraying British soldiers in retreat and
local Massachusetts militia & minutemen harassing and attacking them. The numbers of
individuals involved should be accurate and the portrayal of the Concord countryside needs to be
geographically accurate.
Photographs of Concord
Figure 1: Concord Today
Figure 2: Concord Cemetery
Figure 3: Concord Cemetery
Figure 4: Bay Road
Figure 5: Hartwell Tavern Sign
Figure 6: Hartwell Tavern Barn
Figure 7: Outside Hartwell Tavern